November 14, 2010

Well, a weekend is concluding again and its been a while since I've sat down to this here blog. Where to start?

At work, the other guy in my group left the company, leaving me with all the work to finish off. He was a good guy and did a great job on his stuff. My head is spinning trying to catch up on all the projects that he was working on and get them confirmed and move on. On top of it, I am still trying to understand the process and systems of the job, so I am a bit slow on the uptake for most stuff...its a challenge, but thats why they pay me, right?

On to the weekend...I'll be taking in my seats to a local upholsterer to help rebuild the foam in the seats. I purchased the stock upholstery covers when we first moved back...so its sort of only a half job that he has to do. While my car is out of commission, I decided to rent an econo-box while its seats are missing. This way, I can keep the car in my garage and I can replace carpet, weatherstripping and a load of other items that have been held off in the interior.

In addition to that, it was time to change the oil in the 'family' car. I headed to the store and picked up all the oil and filters and my plan was to explain to the kid how its done. Errrrr. First off, throughout life, I have despised shops that change your oil and wrench on the filter with all their might. This happened a couple months ago with the local Ford dealer, who did an overall check to the car and changed the oil too. Mistake. I got under the car and could not budge the filter...the only thing the kid learned about changing the oil was you get dirty both on your hands, arms and mouth. Gah!

So, he and I packed up the car and drove down to the local Jiffy Lube for the change. I begged them to hand-tighten and then a quarter turn with the filter. I'd never been to a Jiffy Lube before and the guys were incredibly efficient and helpful. To my surprise, the pointed out that the belts in the car were well on their way to death and should be replaced...they called me over to check it out. Errr...in the past 3 months, this car has been to the Ford dealership TWICE and it was never pointed out to me. In fact, I have an inspection card from them with a little green check next to the belts. So, the guys at Jiffy Lube made the change for me.

Back home, I began the work of gutting the interior of the Cougar. First was the seats and to remove them, you have to pull some grommets from the bottom of the car. These grommets were caked in dirt and mud...nearly 45 years worth! Was able to bang it all away and get the seats out, only to find all sorts of goodies underneath the seats. Garbage, food, cigarette butts, coins and S&H green stamps! A time capsule in a car. Coins from 1964, 1972 and beyond...kinda fun. Then came the seatbelts and the carpet and surprisingly the underside of the car is in pretty decent shape.

Tomorrow, I have to deliver those seats and then its on to fixing the weatherstripping, carpet and a bunch of little things in the car. In the meantime, I have to wear dark glasses and a hat to work each day as I pull into work in a Nissan Versa.

October 20, 2010

October 04, 2010

Oh, there is a list of things a mile long that need to be done around the house. We still have unpacking and organizing to do...still need to hang pictures on the walls...still some furniture moving. But, it all takes a backseat to the kids soccer games and the Winterhawks.

This weekend we were treated to back to back to back games on Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday morning we headed to Sherwood for the kids soccer match...this was the first early morning match he had since joining the team. I forget the score, as it was a rout (the 3rd in a row) without a goal scored by his team (the 3rd in a row, also). They are playing hard and getting the opportunities, just sometimes you need some 'puck luck' and they don't have it right now. They are all smiling and having a good time...and thats the great part of it.

Saturday night was a decent game against Seattle...although the outcome wasn't what was expected. The Hawks jumped out quickly in the game, peppering the Seattle defense and goaltender with shot after shot....then, Seattle breaks, gets their first shot on goal and score. Shots were something like 13-1, Portland, but the score was 1-0 Seattle. It all ended in a shootout, which was appropriate given the somewhat uninspired and selfish play Portland was showing towards the end of the game. It's early yet...the team really hasn't been together that long.

The surprise of the night was the return of Ryan Johanson, the number 4 pick in the NHL draft. We learned earlier in the morning that Columbus had sent him back to Portland, but were surprised to see him on the ice for the game...he came out firing in the first. Then, I think his body reminded him that he had just flown cross country and it was time for sleepy.

Sundays game against Lethbridge started at 5pm...which meant an early dinner at the house and on the road by 5pm for the game. Afterwards, the team invited all season ticket holders to a bit of a party. Well, they had some grub (which I wasn't too interested in after having the heaping of Golden Curry before we headed out to the game), pops and an interview session with the president of the club as well as the coach/GM. The night was to be topped off by a meet and greet with some of the players.

As 'luck' would have it, the kid came down with one of his infamous headaches midway through the game. He struggled through the 3rd period of the game and then as we were sitting through the interviews after the game, he got up to head to the toilet, as those headaches make his stomach squirm. A few minutes later, he came back and said the players were all out there and that he wanted his poster and a pen for signing; off he went. Adreniline firing through him, the headache was gone.

After the interviews, we shuffled back up to the lounge to see where he might be...and he was just about to visit Ryan Johanson for an autograph and picture...then 3 other players. After he was done, I told him the queue for the other players was massive and we might want to forgo it for now, 'Thats OK, I already got them!' So, in his quick sprint up, he was able to meet the other players before anyone else. Sweet.

There are some things that big time sports bring out in all of us kids through the years, make us feel great for just a moment in time while we are able to meet and speak with our 'heroes'. Back in the car for the ride home, the kid just lay his head on the door and closed his eyes, wishing for his head to feel better. Thanks to the 'Hawks for making it go away for just a short period of time.

That seems to be the predominant question from friends and colleagues as I bump into people I haven't seen in a while. The answer is usually...'still digging through the boxes and stuff.' But, upon reflection, yeah, I think we are getting settled in.

This past week saw the Tai-Tai furiously organizing bathrooms, kitchen, living room and bedroom (still waiting for the kids to follow suit). So much so, that at one point last week, during a massive cleaning of the house, she exclaimed, 'I want my aiyee!' Well...

Myself, its been about learning of my role and the expectations of those around me...they seem to be somewhat in line, thankfully. I've been working on various organizing projects to help me learn whats going on and get a sense of what has been missed in the past. Slow progress, I guess.

At home, I have tried to organize what I could, but also try and take the time to relax and enjoy the new surroundings. The weekends seem to be filled with a day of getting the kid to soccer and popping in someplace for lunch. Nothings changed there...just like in GZ.

Last Saturday, we experienced a rainstorm of GZ magnitude. The sound outside was deafening as the water poured out of the rain gutters and on to the door step and garden. 'Did anyone ever clean the gutters when they lived here??' Sunday morning it was up on the ladder to check it out...and the answer was a definite, NO. After struggling climbing up and down the ladder, scooping out black goop with my hands and washing it down...then down the ladder to move it over a few feet and do it again, I decided to brave my fears and crawl up on the mighty rooftop to get a better vantage point of it all. A couple hours later, it was done.

I've also been working on the garden too...trying to get it back to a respectable green color. We've been watering everyday since the renters moved out and that had really seemed to bring it back after about a month...then I applied the fertilizer and BOOM...it began growing like crazy. It's almost back to where I would like to see it...but we still have plenty of work to do with plants, shrubs and the like.

Last night we hooked up with some old friends as they played in a hockey game. While I couldn't be there immediately due to a conference call at work, I arrived after the game was over (arrghgh). But, we had a wonderful dinner with all after everyone got cleaned up from their big game. The hard sell was placed on my to join in the league and start playing, which is incredibly tempting.

Tonight, I am hoping my schedule will allow expat daughter and I to head into town to see a favorite band play. I've admired them from afar for quite a few years and this is my first opportunity to get to hear them live...

So, yeah, things are becoming very domestic...we are getting settled in, slowly. We still have a mountain of stuff to go through in the basement and garage, but I think its managable at this time.